Socket for ink roller



Jime 30, 1959 9 c. w. CHASE 2,892,399 SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER Filed Dec.19, 1955 s Sheets-Sheet 1 In ventor:

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I SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER Filed Dec. 19, 1955 s Shee ts-Shqet 2 1n vehtori- Co son Chase, y fiw b His Attorn 3 June 30, 1959 c. w. CHASE2,892,399 SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER Filed Dec. 19, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 inv-e 7') ton- Cor'on Chase,

United States Patent Ofilice SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER Application December19, 1955, Serial No. 553,929 8 Claims. (Cl. 101-349) The presentinvention relates to printing presses and more particularly a socket foradjustably mounting an ink roller relative to a pair of ink cylinders.

It is 'an object of the present invention to provide a socket for an inkroller for transferring an ink film between a spaced pair of inkcylinders and which is capable of applying predetermined forces to thecylinders within a wide operating range.

It is a related object to provide an ink roller socket which is capableof resiliently applying predetermined forces to a pair of ink cylindersbut which need not be oriented in a particular direction with respect tothe cylinders. More specifically, an ink roller socket in which thetotal resultant force may not only be varied in magnitude but may beapplied along a range of desired direction. In one of the embodiments ofthe device the resultant force may be applied in any direction i.e.,through a full 360.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved socket foran ink roller which permits precise proportioning of the forces exertedupon two cooperating ink cylinders, which is convenient to adjust, andwhich does not require time-consuming readjustment when a new rollerhaving a slightly different diameter is substituted. It is a relatedobject to provide an ink roller socket w 'ch does not have to bereadjusted to compensate for progressive changes in the diameter of theroller which occur due to changes in temperature and absorption of ink.

It is a further object of the present invention to employ an improvedsocket for an ink roller which has novel adjusting means enabling theroller to be brought to bear resiliently and with predetermined orproportioned force against two spaced ink cylinders and which may bereadily modified for positive positioning of the roller over arelatively wide range and in any desired direction.

In one of its aspects it isan object of the invention to provide aroller socket which is particularly well-adapted for use with an inktransfer roller but which is nevertheless capable of being used almostuniversally in a printing press for mounting the various ink rollers andink cylinders or drums.

It is another object of the invention to provide an ink roller socket ofthe above type which permits rollers to be readily substituted withouthaving to work against the resilient forces of the adjusting mechanism.More specifically, it is an object to provide means for locking theroller socket in a desired position relative to the frame prior toremoval of a roller, the looking means being released for resumption ofthe resilient pressures after a new roller is substituted.

It is a generalobject to provide a socket for a printing press rollerwhich is simple and inexpensive to construct and install and which maybe readily removed from the press and serviced as a unit.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent uponreading the attached detailed description and upon reference to thedrawings, in which:

it is an object to provide order that the .spring. 45 may bearadjustably against the .member and the press frame.

2,892,399 Patented June 30, 1959 Figure 1 is a face view or elevation ofan ink roller socket constructed in accordance with the presentinvention.

Fig. 2 is a top view of the socket shown in Figure 1.

Fig. 3 is a righthand end view of the socket shown in Figure 1. a

Fig. 4 is a righthand end view of a modified construction includingsprings capable of applying force in either tension or compression. 4

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic perspective of the socket shown in Figs. l-3for the purpose of understanding the operation of the device.

Fig. 6 is a vector diagram showing a typical operating condition of thedevice shown in Figs. 1-3.

Fig. 7 is a vector diagram showing the range of force and directionwhich may be obtained in the alternative embodiment of Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a diagrammatic perspective showing the means used to lock thesocket in position while changing rollers.

Figs. 8a'and 8b are fragments showing the locking lever in its releasedand engaged conditions respectively.

While the invention has been described in connection with certainpreferred embodiments, it will be understood that I do not intend tolimit the invention to such embodiments but intend to cover allmodifications, alternative constructions and uses which are includedwithin the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Turning now to Figs. l-3 there is shown a socket assembly 10 mounted onthe frame 11 of a printing press and mounting a roller 12. The roller 12has a shaft 13 which is journaled in an anti-friction bearing 14. Theroller assembly is mounted on the inside surface of one of the pressframe plates, and it will be understood that the other end of the rolleris mounted in a corresponding socket assembly which may, if desired, bethe mirror image of that which is to be described. In the presentassembly it will be assumed that the roller- 12 bears against a pair ofink cylinders 21, 22 having centers of rotation 23, 24, respectively.

In carrying out the present invention the socket assembly 10 includes abase member 30 which is mounted for limited rocking movement on thepress frame to provide a lateral adjustment of the roller 12 on onedirection togetherwith a socket member 31 which is movably mounted onthe base member to provide lateral adjustment of the roller in anotherdirection. As'will be seen the two movements may be coordinated so thatthe roller exerts a resultant force having a direction and magnitudewhich may be varied over a wide range.

Referring more specifically to the base member 30, it will be noted thatitis arcuately shaped having a central recess, 32, a first end 33, asecond end or lip 34, .and aflat mounting face 35'which is seated butslidable on the press frame 11. The base member 30 is pivotally mountedwith respect to the press frame for limited rocking movement about anaxis 36 which is eccentric with respect to the roller axis 15 andparallel thereto. More specifically, the base member is mounted forrotation about a stud 37 which is anchored in the press frame and whichprojects through a bore 38 formed in the central, i.e., lower, portionof the base member. The base member is retained on the stud by means ofa staked washer 39 which is held in place by a machine screw 40.

For the purpose of applying torque to the base member about the pivotaxis 36, an adjustment mechanism including a spring is interposedbetween the end 34 of the base As shown in Fig. 3 the spring, indicatedat 45, is seated on an eye-bolt 46 which is secured to the press frameand which projects outwardly therefrom. The spring is kept centered onthe eye-bolt by slipping it over the head of a screw 47. In

righthand end or lip 34 of the base member, a set screw 48 is providedwhich is screwed into the base member and which engages a pilot 49 atthe top of the spring 45. It will be understood as the discussionproceeds that the spring 45, acting about the axis 36 as a center,applies a horizontal component of force to the ink roller. Attentionwill next be given to the socket member 31 which provides a verticalcomponent of force.

For the purpose of adjusting the roller vertically with respect to thebase member, and consequently with respect to the press frame, thesocket member 31 is of matching arcuate shape, being nested within thearcuate base member yet movable vertically with respect thereto. In thepresent instance the socket member 31 has a lefthand end 53 which ispivotally mounted on the base member 30 for rotation about an eccentricaxis 54 which is parallel to the roller axis. More specifically, a hingejoint is provided between the base member 30 and the socket member 31which includes a pivot pin 55 maintained in place by a set screw 56screwed into the base member (Fig. 2). Also hinged on the pin 55 is anarmate cap member 60 which is formed to overlie the socket member 31 andwhich, together with the socket member, defines a central opening 61 forreceiving the anti-friction bearing 14 previously referred to. For thepurpose of clamping together the camp member 60 and the socket member 31a clamping screw 62 is provided, the screw being received in therighthand end of the cap member 60 and threaded into the socket member.It will be understood that when the screw 62 is tightened down the capmember and socket member form a rigid unit free to rock upwardly ordownwardly about the pivot pin 55 in response to the applied pressure.

In order to adjust the socket member 31 in its path of upward anddownward rocking movement, a spring adjustment is interposed between therighthand end of the socket member and the righthand end of the basemember. This adjustment includes a compression spring 65 which ismounted below the lip 34 of the base member. The lower end of the spring65 is coupled to the socket member by means of an elongated adjustingscrew 66 which extends centrally within the spring and upwardly throughan aperture 67 provided in the lip 34 of the base member. At the lowerend of the adjusting screw 66 is a flanged retainer 68 which is engagedby the end of the spring. The upper end of the adjusting screw isthreaded at 69 and is screwed into the lip of the socket member. It willbe apparent that expansion of the spring 65, pulling downwardly on theadjusting screw 66, applies a clockwise torque to the socket memberabout its point of pivoting with the base member, resulting in adownward force being applied to the roller. This component of downwardforce is adjustable by rotating the adjusting screw 66, just as thehorizontal component is adjustable by rotating the adjusting screw 48.

The manner in which the two force components, horizontal and vertical,are combined to provide a net force which is then divided between thetwo ink cylinders 21, 22, will be apparent upon referring to thediagrams, Figs. and 6. In these figures the horizontal component offorce exerted by the spring 45 is indicated vectorially at F Thedownward component of force exerted by the spring 65 is indicated by thevector F These vectors combine to produce a resultant force vector Vwhich, as shown, is exerted downwardly and to the left. The force of theresultant vector is, of course, divided vectorially between the two inkcylinders 21, 22, the reaction forces being directed along lines whichconnect the centers 15, 23 and 15, 24, respectively. Thus the forceapplied by the ink roller 12 against the roller 22 is indicated at Pwhile the force applied against the roller 21 is indicated at P It willbe understood that the forces shown are siniply exemplary and, where twoidentical socket assemblies are used, one at each end of the roller,one-half is applied by each of the assemblies. Since the forces exertedby the springs 45, 65 may be varied from substantially zero to anextremely high value and since such variation may take placeindependently, it will be apparent that the forces applied to the inkcylinders may be varied independently over wide limits. For springshaving a given maximum force, the force vector V may be caused to fallanywhere within the stippled area in Fig. 6. It will be apparent fromthe foregoing that the socket assembly need not be oriented in anyparticular way with respect to the cylinders 21, 22. Furthermore,because of the range of movement of the roller axis which the designpermits, rollers may be substituted having a diameter which departssubstantially from the nominal roller diameter specified as part of theoriginal press design.

In order to provide still further flexibility and to enable the socketassembly to exert a resultant force in any desired direction through afull 360, a two-way or double-acting spring connection is substitutedfor the single-acting spring connection described above. Such anarrangement as shown in Fig. 4 where corresponding parts, whereapplicable, are designated by the same reference numerals with theaddition of subscript a. Attention will first be given to the springadjustment which is interposed between the base member 30 and the pressframe. The spring 45,, has its upper end anchored to a bushing 75 whichis captive in the end of the eye-bolt 46 Centered within the spring isan elongated adjusting screw 76. Pinned to the lower end of theadjusting screw is a retainer 77 which is anchored to the lower end ofthe spring. The adjusting screw 76 extends upwardly through the bushing75 and into threaded engagement with a captive nut 78 which rotates inthe lip 34, of the base member 30 Also as shown in Fig. 4 a two-wayspring connection is provided between the base member and socket member.Here the spring indicated at 65 is anchored at its upper end in abushing 85. Extending through the bushing is an adjusting screw 86having a spring retainer 87 pinned to its lower end. For the purpose ofadjusting the direction and magnitude of the spring pressure, the upperend of the adjusting screw is threaded into an adjusting nut 88 which iscaptive in the lip portion of the socket member 31. The upper ends ofboth of the adjusting screws 76, 86 are squared for applying a wrench sothat the adjusting screws may be held in position while the associatedadjusting nuts are rotated in one direction or the other. The pitch ofthe thread is suthciently shallow and the friction is sufli'ciently highso that once the adjustment is achieved it will not be accidentallydisturbed by vibration.

The flexibility afforded by the arrangement in Fig. 4 will be apparentto one skilled in the art. In short, each spring is capable of exertingeither a push or a pull depending entirely upon the adjustment of thenuts 78, 88 and the relative location of the ink cylinders. Thus whenthe cylinders are located on the opposite side of the ink roller theadjusting screws are set so that the socket member is pushed upwardly bythe spring 65,, and the base is pulled downwardly by the spring 45producing a resultant force vector lying along the line V' in Fig. 7.The stippled area in the latter figure indicates all possibilities ofdirections and magnitudes of the resultant force vector, limited only bythe maximum compression and expansion forces, F and F which may beachieved by the springs incorporated in the design. Since the resultantforce may be applied in any direction whatsoever and at anypredetermined magnitude the socket approaches the ultimate inflexibility. It is particularly suitable for use, therefore, as a socketfor transfer rollers. Use of the socket simplifies the design of thepress since the socket may be oriented in a position determined bysymmetry, accessibility for service, ease of removability of rollers andthe like quite independently of the relative directions of the two inkcylinders with which the roller is to cooperate. While both springs havebeen shown as double-acting in the embodiment disclosed in Fig. 4

it will be understood that if desired for special purposes only one ofthe springs may be madedouble-acting while the other is single-acting asset forth in the earlier embodiment. If this were done it would tend tolimit the range of angle of the resultant force vector to 270 ratherthan the full 360 but the design would still have a degree offlexibility which goes far beyond that of roller sockets conventionallyemployed.

In accordance with one of the features of the invention, means areprovided for holding the socket member in a desired fixed positionrelative to the frame of the press and to take up the pressure of thesprings 45, 65 during the changing of a roller without, however,interfering with the normal response to the springs which occurs underactual operating conditions. This is accomplished in the presentembodiment (Figs. 1-3) by an auxiliary cap or locking member 90 whichcooperates with a pin 91 mounted on the press frame and extending intothe path of movement of the locking member. The locking member 90 ispivoted at one end for scissoring movement relative to the socket member31. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, the locking member is mounted onthe rear end of the pivot pin 55 and lies closely adjacent the frame 11of the press. At its other or righthand end the locking member carries aclamping or take-up screw 92 having an elongated head for easyadjustment and threading into a bracket 93 integrally formed on thesocket member. In order to more fully understand the operation of thelocking member 90 reference is also made to Figs. 8, 8a and 8b which arediagrammatic. Under normal operating conditions the locking member 90 isbacked off into the position shown in Fig. 8a so that there is nointerference with the pin 91 and so that the socket is free to assume anequilibrium position in accordance with the pressures exerted by thesprings. When it is desired to change rollers the screw 92is tightenedto bring the locking member 90 downwardly about its pivot axis intocontact with the pin 91 on the printing press frame as shown in Fig. 8b.Following this the bearing cap 60 may be opened by unscrewing the screw62 and, after this is done at each end of the roller, the roller may belifted out of the press and a new'roller substituted. After the newroller is placed the bearing caps may be then swung to the closedposition and may be securely tightened about the shaft bearing withoutthe necessity of overcoming any spring pressure and without having todisturb the adjustment. Subsequently the screw 92 may be unscrewed torestore the locking member into the backed off position shown in Fig.8a. A detent spring 94 bearing against the flats on the screw 92prevents unwanted turning.

In carrying out the invention the locking member is formed with astriking surface 95 which is located at approximately right angles tothe direction of the resultant force vector which is indicated at V inFig. 8b. This tends to reduce the possibility of unwanted sidewardslippage of the locking member relative to the pin 91 after contact withthe pin is achieved and thus tends to insure that the socket will remainin its exact adjusted position during change of rollers. In short, thepin will not tend to slip relatively downhill on the striking surface asthe caps are loosened and as the reaction pressure from the cooperatingink cylinders is relieved. It is, however, one of the features of thepresent device that the locking member 90 is formed with a notch 95 sothat when the screw 92 is tightened beyond the point of Fig. 8badditional relative movement between the notch and pin will tend tooccur with the pin finally bottoming in the root of the notch as shownin Fig. 8. This is accompanied by retreating movement of the socket fromeach of the two ink cylinders so that the roller is drawn back into areference position out of contact with the ink cylinders. With thereaction pressures thus removed and with the socket effectively lockedin position, the roller may be readily removed and replaced withouthaving to exert any take-up force when replacing the cap 60.

The locking mechanism described" thus far is ideally suited for use withthe embodiment shown in Figs. 1-3. However, where it is desired toreverse the direction of application of the resultant force, forexample, to apply the resultant force in a generally upward directionwhile keeping the socket oriented as in Figure 1, the locking membermust be modified to the extent of providing a striking surface along thetop edge rather than the bottom edge of the member and by a reversal inthe direction of the thrust exerted by the screw 92.

When initially adjusting the socket construction in accordance witheither of the embodiments described above, the adjusting screws areadjusted one by one in a coordinated fashion to produce flats of thedesired width on each of the two ink cylinders. This adjustment is notat all diflicult considering that the adjusting screw 48 (or 76)controls the horizontal pressure component while the remaining adjustingscrew 69 (or 86) controls the vertical component. Nor is it necessary torepeat the entire adjustment procedure when a new roller is substitutedhaving a slightly different diameter since the change in the width ofthe fiat will generally be negligible and since the forces will remainin the desired ratio.

While the socket described above has its greatest utility as a socket ofthe resilient type in which the springs are at all times active, it maybe desired, under some circumstances, to convert the device to one ofthe rigid type in which the adjustments control the position rather thanthe pressure and in which dependence is placed upon the resilience ofthe rubber. Thus it will be apparent that the invention is not to beconsidered limited to the spring arrangement shown but would coversubstitution of the springs by rigid tubular members, or equivalent,having the same nominal dimensions and supported and anchored in thesame manner as the springs disclosed.

The present socket construction is equally useful for mounting metaldrums or cylinders in a printing press. Consequently, in the claimswhich follow the term roller is used in a generic sense to mean acylindrical rotating element regardless of whether such element isrubber surfaced or hard surfaced.

I claim as my invention: a

1. In a socket assembly for a roller in a printing press for holding thesame in engagement with a pair of cylinders, the combination comprisinga base member having a pivot arranged parallel to the axis of the rollerand spaced therefrom, a socket member mounted on the base member forrotation about an axis which is parallel to the axis of the first pivotand spaced therefrom, a first adjusting means interposed between thebase member and the frame of the printing press and having a resilientelement for continuous application of resilient force tending to adjustthe force exerted by the roller in a first transaxial direction, and asecond adjusting means interposed between the base member and the socketmember and having a resilient element for continuous application of asecond resilient force tending to adjust the force exerted by the rollerin a second transaxial direction.

2. In a socket assembly for a roller in a printing press for holding thesame in engagement with a pair of cylinders, the combination comprisinga base member having a pivot arranged parallel to the axis of the rollerand spaced therefrom, a socket member mounted on the base member forrotation about an axis which is parallel to the axis of the first pivotand spaced therefrom by approximately right angles relative to theroller axis, a first spring interposed between the base member and theframe and the printing press for transaxial adjustment of the rolleralong a first line of movement, and a second spring interposed betweenthe base member and the socket member for transaxial adjustment of theroller along a second line of movement, said springs having provisionfor independent adjustment for varying the relative pressures applied tosaid cylinders.

3. In a socket assembly for mounting a roller in a printing press andfor holding the same in engagement with a pair of cylinders, thecombination comprising a base member having a pivot which is offset in afirst direction from the roller axis for pivotally mounting the same onthe frame of the printing press for rocking movement about an axisparallel to the roller axis, a socket member for rotatably mounting theend of the roller, said socket member having a pivot which is offsetfrom the roller axis at generally right angles from said first directionfor mounting the socket member on said base member for rocking movementof the socket member in a direction at generally right angles to therocking movement of the base member, a first adjustable springinterposed between the base member and the frame of the printing pressand a second adjustable spring interposed between the socket member andthe base member for adjustment of the direction and magnitude of theresultant pressure exerted by said roller on said cylinders.

4. In a socket assembly for mounting a roller in a printing press inengagement with a pair of associated ink cylinders, the combinationcomprising a base member, a socket member mounted on the base member forrotatably mounting the end of the roller, said base member having apivot connection with the press frame which is offset from the rolleraxis for transaxial movement of the roller in a first direction, saidsocket having a pivot connection with the base member which is offsetfrom the roller axis for transaxial movement of the socket member in asecond direction at a large angle to the first, and adjustable springsinterposed between the respective pivoted members for applying pressureresiliently to the associated ink cylinders, at least one of saidsprings having a two way force-transmitting connection at each end.

5. In a socket assembly for mounting a roller in a printing press andfor holding the same in engagement with a pair of cylinders, thecombination comprising a base member having a hollowed out arcuateshape, said base member having a pivot at its central portion which islaterally oifset with respect to the roller axis for pivotally mountingthe same on the frame of the printing press, a socket member havingmeans for journalling the end of the roller, said socket member beingpivoted to one end of said base member for limited rocking movement andnestingly received in said hollowed out base member, and means includingadjustable springs for applying torque between the pivoted members abouttheir respective pivots.

6. In a socket assembly for an ink roller in a printing press, thecombination comprising a base member mounted for limited movement withrespect to the frame of the press and having an adjustable springconnection therewith, a socket member movably mounted on said basemember and having a' spring connection with respect thereto, meanseffective during change of rollers for anchoring the socket member withrespect to the press frame thereby to maintain the socket member in adesired reference position with respect to the frame of the pressagainst the force of said springs.

7. In a socket assembly for a printing press ink roller, the combinationcomprising a base member mounted for limited movement with respect tothe frame of the press and having a spring connection therewith, asocket member mounted for limited movement with respect to the basemember and having a spring connection therewith, said socket memberhaving means for journalling the roller, and means for locking thesocket member against movement with respect to the press frame, saidlocking means including a pin member and a member having a V-shapednotch for receiving the pin member, said pin member and said receivingmember being connected to the socket and frame for overcoming the forcesof the spring connections during removal and replacement of the roller.

8. In a socket assembly for a printing press ink roller, the combinationcomprising a base member mounted for limited movement with respect tothe frame of the press and having a spring connection therewith, asocket member mounted for limited movement with respect to the basemember and having a spring connection therewith, said socket memberhaving means for journalling the roller, a locking lever pivoted to thesocket member and having a screw for scissoring the two members relativeto one another, said press providing an obstruction in the path ofmovement of the locking lever so that upon moving the locking memberinto its obstructing position the locking member is effective to relievethe force of the spring connections and to hold the socket member inposition during removal and replacement of the ink roller.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,689,524 Wood Sept. 21, 1954 i. 4*. m. In a. ix

